Kenyan Youths Use Their Debit and Credit Cards More On Pay Video Streaming

Debit/credit cards

When was the last time you swiped your debit or credit card? Was it for a transaction at the supermarket counter? You’ll probably pass and request that you Lipa Na Mpesa, than start rummaging through your bag for a card. It’s very much convenient and saves time.

A Geopoll study on how youths in six African countries spend, save, and invest just highlighted how the introduction of digital financial services has spurred further growth in the banking industry where traditional retail banks are quickly learning to provide more robust services, where innovations like mobile money are taking over.

The study based on data collected from youth populations in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Ghana, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire focused on topics including income streams, spending habits, payment types, investment decisions, savings patterns, and more.

Use of formal banking services including debit and credit cards has been challenging for Kenyans. The study revealed that Debit and credit cards were only used for 10% of payments overall, which demonstrates their low usage in Africa. According to the data provided in the study, Nigerian respondents were significantly more active with their debit and credit cards than any of the other countries studied,  likely due to Nigeria’s relatively
slow uptake of mobile money services, which has encouraged the use of formal banking services such as
credit cards.

However, some categories were more popular for debit and credit card use than others. Pay video streaming payments were the most popular category for debit or credit card use, at a 17% average across all of the countries studied. In Kenya, use of a debit card or credit on pay video streaming payments, topped the list at 14%.

Insurance premiums followed suit with 15% of these payments made on a debit or credit card. Nicotine product purchases and gambling payments came in at third and fourth with 14% and 12% respectively. Debit and credit cards were least used for groceries at 6%, transportation at 7%, clothing at 7%, and nonalcoholic
beverages at 8%.